The following background information may present examples of specific aspects of the prior art (e.g., without limitation, approaches, facts, or common wisdom) that, while expected to be helpful to further educate the reader as to additional aspects of the prior art, is not to be construed as limiting the present invention, or any embodiments thereof, to anything stated or implied therein or inferred thereupon.
The following is an example of a specific aspect in the prior art that, while expected to be helpful to further educate the reader as to additional aspects of the prior art, is not to be construed as limiting the present invention, or any embodiments thereof, to anything stated or implied therein or inferred thereupon.
By way of educational background, another aspect of the prior art generally useful to be aware of is that An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), commonly known as a drone and referred to as a Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPA) by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), is an aircraft without a human pilot aboard. Its flight is controlled either autonomously by onboard computers or by the remote control of a pilot on the ground or in another vehicle. The typical launch and recovery method of an unmanned aircraft is by the function of an automatic system or an external operator on the ground
Unmanned aerial vehicles, which are also called pilotless aircraft or remote piloted vehicle, are finding their way to market recently, and in the near future, in numerous commercial and civil uses. From thermal or video camera imaging, to parcels delivery, farming, surveying of crops, acrobatic aerial footage in filmmaking, search and rescue operations, construction industry, inspecting powerlines, dams, pipelines, counting wildlife, delivering medical supplies to remote or otherwise inaccessible regions, determining of illegal hunting by animal-rights advocates, livestock monitoring, wildfire mapping, pipeline security, home security, road patrol, and anti-piracy, search and rescue, dropping life preservers to plural swimmers, damage assessment, all-weather imaging through the clouds, rain, or fog, and in a daytime or night times conditions, all in real-time. Also currently there exists a problem with parcel delivery method such as UPS for packages that need a signature which often involves confirmation of delivery of a package or item where human beings interaction is necessary to accept delivery which often requires repeat delivery times which are costly and time-consuming.
Modern local transportation networks rely heavily on ground infrastructure for the transportation of goods and people. More than half of the earth's population now lives in cities, with more than half a billion people living in megacities with populations exceeding 10 million people. In these high-density urban environments demand on ground transportation infrastructure has increased and continues to increase to the point that many metropolitan areas are heavily congested and road transportation networks are very inefficient.
It is well known that air rights are a type of development right in real estate, referring to the empty space above a property. Generally speaking, owning or renting land or a building gives one the right to use and develop the air rights. In the United States, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has the sole authority to control all airspace, exclusively determining the rules and requirements for its use. The general rule is that airplanes must fly high enough that, in the event of an engine failure, the pilot can land the plane without undue hazards to persons or property on the ground.
Currently, electrically powered UAVs are limited in range and duration by the size and weight of the batteries or other power source which they can carry. Batteries and or fuel can make up a significant percentage of the available payload weight. Consequently, there is an inherent tradeoff between duration and useful payload. Because of these constraints, the flight times of electrically powered UAVs are typically limited to less than one hour. Additionally, the distance traveled from a base location is also limited. Also of concern is that UAV batteries slowly lose their energy even when they are completely powered down. Also if a UAV has to remain at a location because of unforeseen flying difficulties such as bad weather or if it has mechanical problems it cannot remain charged. This limits the ability of UAVs to shut down for extended periods of time and then be useful again if the vehicle cannot be recharged. Because of these problems, it is desired to have a means to recharge UAV batteries that does not require a return to the base location. It is also desired to have a means to recharge the batteries that enables the UAV to perform job functions in a more efficient manner, thus enhancing logistical range of UAV.
Even though the above cited methods for delivering a package with an unmanned aerial vehicle address some of the needs of the market, an unmanned aerial vehicle delivery system that docks at a tower, or network of towers, to deliver and or retrieve a package or packages, while simultaneously recharging/refueling a power source is still needed.